Steve Kennedy stared out of the window of the car, as the powerful 4x4 roared down the dirt road towards their destination, the road bumping slightly as they rounded the lake, which was as smooth as glass and as shiny as said material.
He couldn't understand why his mom and dad were in such a panic; their packing had seemed pretty rushed, his parents had looked forcedly happy about the whole affair, his mom telling him 'It's gonna be great, it's us, your cousin and your aunt and uncle!'
He stared at the moon, its luminous glow casting a cool white light on the lakes still surface, Steve found himself transfixed by it.
"Stevey…" his sister muttered "…what time is it?"
He yawned, suddenly realising how tired he felt.
"…mm, what? I dunno…"
He leaned towards the front, where Leon drove with determination, Claire lying back in her seat. They were occasionally exchanging words, but they appeared restless.
"Mom, what time is it?" Steve asked, rubbing his eyes.
Claire let her eyes slide down towards the dashboard, saw the twenty-four hour clock glow green in the darkness of the car.
"Ten thirty, honey" she said, gently "Now why don't you try to get a short nap? It'll take another half an hour"
"I'm not tired, mom" Steve said, folding his arms adamantly.
"Why don't you do as your mother says? You might feel better afterwards" Leon suggested, not taking his eyes off the road.
"No…" he whined.
Leon and Claire sighed. Their children were definitely stubborn, just like them.
"Okay" Claire said, looking at Leon and smiling. He smiled back "If you want; but don't come crying to me when you feel tired in the morning"
Claire heard her son mutter something under his breath, and fall back in his seat. Claire also stared out of the window, into the dark forests beyond the highway. She saw the vegetation rush past, flashes of dark green foliage interrupted by lean, dark trunks of alpine trees.
She didn't feel comfortable about coming here. Sure, they'd worked out hat it was all for the best…but Claire knew when something felt right and when it didn't, and she felt this now. Claire was desperately angry too; she'd been forgetting Umbrella had even existed for ten years, ten whole years and now they were back! But it was different now, there was even more at stake. She was married with two young children, and the knowledge Umbrella and Jill II was back, suddenly set her on an edge she wasn't sure she could be dragged back from in a hurry.
Her warrior instincts were already returning, old instincts that were taking up home again, which she hadn't felt since that final night in Burkitt just over ten years ago. But no more revelations, no more devastating twists; if Umbrella wanted a war then a war was what they'd damned well get.
"Honey…" Leon said, gently placing a hand on Claire's knee as they drove "…are you okay? You haven't talked at all, I was wondering if you were…mad?"
Claire smiled softly, and placed her hand on Leon's.
"Of course not hon" she replied, gently "I'm just…scared, that's all"
She looked back into the back seat, where Steve and Ada now dozed. They always did in the end.
"We'll be back home in less than a week" Leon said "If all goes to plan; besides, Jill's not superhuman, we'd be able to take her on easily"
"Let's just hope that she's taking the bait, coming here like this" Claire sighed.
"It's best it happens here in the middle of nowhere than in a busy town" Leon reassured her.
"And was bringing our children such a good idea?" Claire continued "We could have sent them away to live with Sherry's Aunt Kate or something"
"It is best…" Leon said, firmly so that Claire didn't start to drift off again, she looked at him, his eyes were fixed on hers "…that they be with us. We can protect them that way"
Claire nodded, and lightly kissed Leon on the cheek as he turned back to the long strip of tarmac with no traffic ahead at all. The only other car was Chris and Jill's, and they followed not far behind. Leon looked down at the dashboard, and tapped a gauge.
"Hmm. We're kinda low on gas, let's stop at the next gas station"
"I'll phone Chris" Claire said, nodding and taking the mobile phone from its recharge slot behind the gear stick and pressing a few numbers "To tell him"
It rang for only a second, before Chris picked up.
"Claire?" he asked.
"Yeah, look me and Leon are going to stop at a gas station to refuel, we're kinda low on juice"
"Sure, we'll stop too; need a drink anyway" Chris replied, and Claire heard the tinny sounds of Hannah in the background, complaining about something, while Jill placated her. Claire nearly grinned. Sometimes, all she needed was a little family activity to make her cheer up dramatically.
The gas station was on the near left, the light of the inside office made it glow with a warmth that seemed pleasantly beguiling in this area in the middle of nowhere.
Leon stopped the car, Chris and Jill stopping behind them and Sherry stopping behind them.
"I'll be back before you know it" Leon whispered, lightly squeezing Claire's knee before climbing out into the cool evening air.
Leon stepped into the petrol station, and immediately felt relieved. This was because all the lights were on, and there was a man standing behind the desk, that there was one human at least in this area.
Leon sighed, with a little relief but also with uncertainty. The uncertainty came from the fact that the shop was empty of customers; but this probably amounted to the fact that the time was about ten-thirty at night, and that the only people who would be around at this time were drunkards or desperate hikers. Leon looked down; he felt a chill. There were stains on the polished floor, black stains that showed up in the white light that illuminated the low building.
Blood. It was long dried blood, so it could have been there from several days up to a month or two. But surely the man would have tried to clean it up? That didn't make sense. Leon turned and looked outside the window to the car, where Claire was sitting in the front. She caught his eye, and smiled encouragingly.
He smiled back.
Leon felt Chris jab him in the small of his back.
"Come on" Chris said "You are gonna pay for your gas, right?"
"Nah" Leon replied, as they walked up towards the counter "I thought I might just drive off with my stolen goods"
"Very funny" Chris sighed, with a grin plastered on his face.
They walked to the counter, checking dollar notes in their wallets. The man at the counter had a cigarette in his mouth, which Leon mildly disapproved of, but he looked cheerful nevertheless. Smoke slowly puffed from the end of it, and he stubbed it in a tray on the counter.
"Can I help you gentlemen?" he asked, in a deep, hearty voice that vaguely reminded Chris of Barry.
There was the sound of a car approaching outside. Probably Sherry, having caught up in her Corvette. She was always behind time, Leon reflected, she didn't know how not to be. Which would be a bit of a problem when she was going to finally get a job…
"You know those things can kill you" Chris said, casually, gesturing at the smoldering cigarette stub.
Leon looked at Chris in bemusement.
"Coming from somebody who was a thirty-a-day man" Leon commented.
"That was ten years ago" Chris pointed out "I'm different now"
"It did take Jill to get you to give up" Leon replied "At least you kept your promise"
"I can't endanger Hannah's health by smoking" Chris said "Sometimes, I want to but I know I can't and I won't"
"I only smoke to keep my nerves steady" the man at the counter observed, as he took their money "And that is only at night; You see, things have been happening around here, and…well…"
Chris and Leon froze. 'Things happening' before had always had a different connotation, usually for something that involved Umbrella.
"Things?" Chris said, in an Oscar-worthy performance as an ignorant tourist.
"You see that stain on the floor?" the proprietor said, waving at the black stain Leon had noticed earlier.
They both looked.
"Yeah" Chris said.
"It's the blood of a hitch-hiker, who staggered in there the other day; he was torn up and looking like a horse bein' attacked by wolves, he bled all over the floor. There were two other people in here, I ran up to him to help him, he grabbed my lapels and yelled 'There's something out there! Something evil!' "
The man recalled this with a shiver, Leon felt a warm feeling of dread filter through his stomach to his throat.
"We got him to a hospital, he'd been with three other guys he said later…and they were all killed"
"I see…" Chris said, taking his receipt, looking thoughtful.
Leon's mind raced. If they were staying…yes, they had weapons and plenty of ammo. They also had enough food for two weeks…at least they had enough to survive with. But Leon was beginning to have a horrible feeling about this.
"You staying here for long?" the proprietor asked.
"A little while" Leon put in.
"Where are ya staying?" he persisted.
"Near a place called Wolverine's creek" Leon admitted.
"You should be okay there" the man said, smiling before it quickly disappeared "It's safe in and just around the town; but in the woods? It's untamed territory…and something bad's got into that forest…something real bad"
"I think we'll be okay" Leon said, cheerfully "Come on Chris"
They left, a little faster than was absolutely necessary.
"Bad things, wounded hitchikers…" Chris murmured "…shit it's like the Arklay forest incident all over again"
"…Except that this time" Leon said "…we got the kids. And what are the bets that Wolverine Creek's gone silent?"
"One to one" Chris replied "But we can't go back now; let's stay here for a few days, and then go home. It'll probably be better if we do"
Leon nodded, reluctantly.
They climbed into their vehicles. Steve and Ada were sound asleep, and Leon, now safely inside the warmth of the car turned to Claire.
"I'm beginning to wonder if it was a good idea coming here at all" Leon said, quietly.
"What are you saying?" Claire asked, a little confused.
"Bizarre murder cases, dead hikers…ring a bell?" Leon persisted.
Claire opened her mouth, and shut it again without saying anything.
"…Please say it isn't true…" she murmured.
"It's okay baby" Leon said, gently as he allowed her to settle her face into his shoulder, holding her close "I swear nothing will get near you or the children. Ever"
The cabin looked like a typical wooden log cabin, but Claire and Leon knew otherwise. They'd come to visit it two months previously, when Steve and Ada had been to visit Rebecca for a weekend; Rebecca was a doctor now; true a single doctor but she had the potential to be a great mother. Claire and Leon knew the log motif was a façade; inside, it was like a normal house, with a back garden that went down to the lake with a boathouse en-suite. It had cost a fair pile, but Leon and Claire were both very high earners; Leon being the Commander of the city SWAT team back home, with a 100% success rate, Claire a high-ranking manager in a reputable corporation therefore money was not an enormous issue for them.
They pulled into the drive, basically just a dirt track, thirty minutes after leaving the petrol station.
"And here we are" Leon said, kissing Claire on the cheek.
Claire smiled and lightly kissed her husband back, before turning to the back.
"Steve? Ada?" she said softly, almost musically.
Steve and Ada stirred, blinking a little in the dim light.
"Mm?" Steve and Ada mumbled, as they woke up. For a few moments, Claire and Leon admired their two children sitting in the back, before Ada broke the ice.
"Mom, what are you staring at?" Ada asked.
"Nothing honey" Claire replied tenderly, and opened the car door "You wanna help dad bring the bags in?"
"Sure mom!" Steve exclaimed.
Leon climbed out, and walked around to the back, where he pulled open the boot. Steve tried to take two bags, both of which were too heavy for him, but which in the end Leon had to help him with the one he ended up actually carrying. Chris was helping Hannah carry her luggage case, which she insisted she could carry, but which to Ada's giggling amusement, she couldn't in fact carry.
But soon, they were inside and the cool night shut out behind them.
"Okay…" Chris said, cheerfully rubbing his hands together "…who says we get a good fire going, and we get some cocoa?"
"YEAH!" Ada, Steve and Hannah said in unison.
Leon rolled his eyes.
"Chris, you should cease asking stupid questions now"
Chris grinned, and shrugged.
Ada sat next to her dad, head resting on his chest while Claire sat to her husband's left, Steve lying on her shoulder. Sherry sat slumped in the sofa, arms folded over her chest. The kids were sound asleep, half drunk mugs of cocoa lay abandoned on tabletops as they settled in for the night; Hannah lay curled up across Chris and Jill's laps, they stroked their daughter's hair tenderly.
"What time is it?" Leon asked, yawning in the orange light of the fire that seemed to only fill the small area they were sitting in.
"'Bout…" Chris checked his watch "…midnight"
"Why aren't we going to sleep then?" Leon asked.
"It's…" Chris shrugged "…a hunch"
"I don't feel too comfortable about leaving Steve or Ada alone" Claire admitted, even though she felt sleepy too.
"That guy who ran the petrol station…he said there were killings in this area, didn't he?"
"He did" Chris admitted "And I don't like that; one can't help feeling that we've just landed in an even bigger frying pan"
"Yeah" Leon said "I think we should put the kids to bed, and then get out the weapons; I think I can see this being a long night"
"Who's got any energy tablets?" Sherry asked, running hands down her face.
"I think we can take it in turns on a one hour rota basis" Jill explained.
"I'll go first" Chris said "Then Leon, then Jill, then Claire and then Sherry…until then, anybody who isn't on shift should get some sleep"
"Damn" Leon muttered bemusedly, looking at Claire with a wry smile which, to his surprise she reflected directly back at him "You've got this sorted"
"Always prepared Leon, always prepared" Chris replied, smirking a little "Come on you guys, put the kids to bed"
Night of the Living DeadLeon sat by the window out of the sitting room, looking out into the dark forest surrounding the cabin, and onto the dirt road that led to civilization. His shotgun was propped against his shoulder, Desert Eagle holstered but ready to be fired. Leon was still a good shot, hell he was the Commander of the SWAT teams back at home. But he couldn't help but feel scared. It was the fear that had driven mercilessly into him when he'd been in Raccoon City all those years ago, when he'd first stooped to check out that body in the road…and had heard the groans behind him. Zombies, shuffling zombies that had escaped his nightmares but would soon return. He felt his old survival instincts unfold themselves from their decade slumber, his senses sharp and acute as he sat in the semi darkness of the room, staring out into the moonlit grass that ended about thirty metres from the forest.
Fog rolled in off the lake, it curled like smoke across the ground and licked at the walls of the cabin. Like The Fog, he thought, something evil in the fog…he could sense it was lurking out there, that there was something lurking out there.
The moon was just out of sight, its slightly luminescent glow reflected off the rim of the window frame at the top. Leon checked the window. Solid, but hardly sufficient defense against…well, whatever it was.
Leon had only just come on duty, Jill had woken him after a short nap, and he'd taken the mantle of sentry. He watched, almost unblinkingly; because with the kinds of things he expected to see, if you even dared to blink for a moment you would die.
He sighed, deeply. He felt himself becoming sleepy, and yawned, turning to look out of the window…when something flickered into his peripheral vision and was gone, disappearing like a shadow on a film reel that had slipped its sprockets.
"Shit…" Leon muttered, leaning forward to see if he could catch a glimpse of what he thought he'd seen. A blackish form, moving quickly and stealthily through the foliage. An ice-cold trickle of sweat started to slip down his forehead.
His mind spun. Yes, he did know what to do; wake everybody else up? No, just one person will do…he ran into the next room where he saw Chris, Claire, Sherry and Jill asleep. Hannah, Ada and Steve lay in their own beds, around which the adults lay, like Lions ready to protect their young. He gently nudged Claire.
Her pretty eyelids fluttered open slowly.
"Mm…Leon honey…are you going to work already?" she mumbled in half sleep. Leon squeezed her soft arm ever so softly. She blinked, and looked up at Leon; she immediately became concerned, his expression basically said her worst fears.
"What's going on?" she whispered, climbing off the duvet that she'd collapsed on, and stretched her muscles.
"Claire…" Leon said, quietly "…Claire, there's something out there."
"Like what?" she asked quickly, now wide-awake and listening intently.
"…I don't know" Leon replied "…but it's not human and it certainly isn't an ordinary animal"
"Did you see it?"
"Well…no…"
"How can you be sure?" Claire persisted, it was clear she was trying not to believe what Leon was trying to put across.
"Believe me honey, I know…" Leon whispered "…you better come with me"
Claire nodded, and pulled a shotgun from under the bed. They crept out towards the window, and looked into the darkness again. Claire gripped the shotgun tightly.
"Are you sure it wasn't just a wolf or something?" she asked.
"How many wolves do you know are in Washington state?" Leon replied, drolly.
"Okay, okay…" Claire sighed "…I was just trying to make my point"
The surrounding foliage was sculpted by shadows and glistening moonlight, giving it an ethereal look, but one that was not entirely pleasant to them.
"See anything?" Leon asked.
Claire shook her head.
"Nothing" she replied.
Then, in one terrible moment there was a crash of glass; in this single moment of sound, Claire and Leon turned with a knowing, numbing dread and dived into the kid's room. They looked on in horror, as they saw the shattered glass of the window spill onto the ground…and a Licker reared its head, and screeched a deafening cry that shattered their hopes and dreams. Chris and Jill were immediately awake, weapons already being drawn. Steve, Ada and Hannah were screaming, huddling against the bed-board in an attempt to back away from this hideous creature.
Steve stared. It was a monkey or a dog or something, but it couldn't be because it didn't have any skin. And the length of the tongue! It was immense! Steve saw that it had an exposed…he gulped in between his screaming…an exposed brain, with no eyes to speak of.
Then he heard another cry. But this cry came from his father, a cry of anger that was a direct aggressive riposte to this hissing creature that had just torn through the glass like it was paper with its enormous, razor-like claws.
There was a gunshot, his dad fired a shotgun shell into the creature, which shrieked and recoiled, but struck out. He saw his mom hurl herself back, firing at the creature before his Aunt Jill fired two shots from a pistol that finally sent the thing sprawling, it thrashed around for a few moments, before its scream died and it stopped moving, blood pooling beneath its motionless corpse.
Leon breathed a sigh of relief.
Ada and Steve ran to their parents, Hannah jumped into her father's arms and began to cry. Leon squeezed Ada, and felt her tears permeate the area halfway up his chest.
"Sssh…" he said gently, as Claire did so with Steve; he was also crying "It'll be okay…"
"W-wh-what was that thing?!" Hannah asked her mother, who was now taking her turn to hold her tightly "…it…w-w-w…"
"A monster…I know" Jill replied, who looked up and cursed under her breath.
"I-I-I-I was so scared!" Ada murmured, still holding onto her father. If anybody tried to prise her off, they would have had difficulty doing so with a tire iron.
Steve was silent, but he was still in tears; he didn't say anything, Claire whispered words of comfort in his ear.
"They've done it" Chris said after a while "They've got to us; and now here we are"
Suddenly, from outside…there was a grotesque chorus of low moans.
Leon closed his eyes. It had begun again. This time, Umbrella was back. And they meant business.